Sterling should be allowed to stabilise

Sam Fleming Economic Insight

Saturday June 08 2013, 1.01am, The Times

Sam Fleming Economic Insight

Saturday June 08 2013, 1.01am, The Times

Will Mark Carney inherit a “crisis economy”, to use the damning description he deployed about Britain in April? The Canadian banker’s brutal verdict is looking increasingly at odds with the economic data.

This week’s deluge of strengthening numbers included improved surveys of construction, manufacturing and, crucially, services, which account for three quarters of the economy. Britons are even wading more enthusiastically back into the car market, with sales now surpassing their pre-recession peak.

Coupled with this are rising house prices, especially in the South East, which will generate a sense of wellbeing among lucky homeowners while pushing houses further out of the reach of first-time buyers.

Faced with this rosier domestic picture, the notion within parts of Whitehall that the new Bank Governor’s first act